XVI.— The True Shape, Relations, and Structure of the Alimentary Viscera of the Porpoise (Phocœna communis), as displayed by the Formal Method

• Published in: Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
• Main Authors: Hepburn, David, Waterston, David
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge University Press (CUP) 1905
• Subjects: General Earth and Planetary Sciences; General Environmental Science; toothed whales
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/s0080456800034347; https://www.cambridge.org/core/services/aop-cambridge-core/content/view/S0080456800034347

Introductory .—Among the toothed whales (Odontoceti) the porpoise is the best-known representative of those members of the genus Delphinus or true dolphins which present a rounded muzzle as distinguished from a snout, and consequently it has already frequently been subjected to anatomical examination of a more or less detailed character. As in the case of all the Cetacea, however, the rapidity with which decomposition affects the various tissues and organs has hitherto proved a barrier to a prolonged and systematic examination of them, while, even under the most favourable conditions, the increasing putridity of the carcase has seriously militated against the recording of accurate observations.